Six Indian-Americans Who Won the 2024 US elections

Raja Krishnamoorthi, Suhas Subramanyam, Shri Thanedar, Ami Bera, Ro Khanna and Pramila Jayapal emerged victorious in a hard-fought electoral battle. Previously there were five Indian-Americans elected to the House of Representatives

By Fazal Rahim Forbes India Staff

Published: Nov 7, 2024 05:50:20 PM IST

Updated: Nov 7, 2024 07:13:44 PM IST

Full Bio

Raja Krishnamoorthi
Image: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images Raja Krishnamoorthi Image: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Raja Krishnamoorthi

Krishnamoorthi was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2016. This is his fifth term from the

8th Congressional District of Illinois. This year, the Democrat defeated Republican candidate Mark Rice. Krishnamoorthi's parents moved to the US when he was three. He studied mechanical engineering at Princeton University, followed by a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School. After practicing law at various firms, Krishnamoorthi became Deputy Treasurer at the Illinois State Treasurer’s Office. Since becoming a House member, he has served on prominent House Committees such as the Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the US and the Chinese Communist Party and the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus Immigration Task Force.

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Suhas Subramanyam
Image: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images Suhas Subramanyam Image: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Suhas Subramanyam

Subramanyam, a Democrat candidate, defeated Republican Mike Clancy by 16,875 votes. He will represent the 10th Congressional District of Virginia in the US House of Representatives. Subramanyam is a state senator in the Virginia State Senate. He was born in Huston, Texas, in 1979 to Indian parents who moved to the US from Bengaluru. Subramanyam went to Tulane University, where he completed his Bachelor of Arts in philosophy. He then obtained his Doctor of Law from Northwestern University. During the Obama administration in 2015-17, he worked with the White House as a Policy Advisor on technology policies. In 2020, he was elected delegate to the Virginia House of Delegates.

Shri Thanedar
Image: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images/AFP Shri Thanedar Image: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images/AFP

Shri Thanedar

Thanedar, a Democratic candidate, has won the US House of Representatives election from the 13th District of Michigan. He secured 69 percent votes, defeating Republican candidate Martell Bivings by 141,698 votes. This is Thanedar’s second term in the US House; he had previously represented the 13th district in the US House since January 2023. Prior to the US House, Thanedar was elected as a member of the Michigan State House of Representatives in 2021. Born in Karnataka, Thanedar obtained his master’s degree in chemistry from the University of Mumbai. In 1979, he moved to the US for his PhD. Soon, he started his entrepreneurial journey, which earned him a name in the business world.

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Ami Bera
Image: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images Ami Bera Image: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Ami Bera

Bera, a Democrat, has been re-elected to the US House from the 6th Congressional District of California. Previously he represented the 7th district from 2013 to 2023. He was a House Foreign Affairs Committee member, serving as a Ranking Rember on Indo-Pacific affairs. Bera was born and brought up in California; his parents moved to the US in 1958. He studied medicine and received his MD from the University of California. After a long career as a medical professional, clinical professor, and as Chief Medical Officer of Sacramento County, Bera entered politics in 2010.

Rao Khanna
Image: Sarah Silbiger / Reuters Rao Khanna Image: Sarah Silbiger / Reuters

Ro Khanna

Khanna won his House of Representatives seat from the 17th Congressional District of California for the fifth time. He first won in 2016 after an unsuccessful attempt in 2014. Previously, he served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce in the Obama Administration. Khanna’s parents migrated to the US in the 1970s. He completed his BA in economics at the University of Chicago and obtained a law degree at Yale University. He counselled several companies in legal matters for some time and worked as a visiting professor at Stanford University. Khanna held several important positions in the House. He was co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans and Chair of the House Oversight and Reform Environmental Subcommittee

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Pramila Jayapal
Image: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images Pramila Jayapal Image: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Pramila Jayapal

Jayapal, a Democrat, emerged victorious for the fifth time from Washington’s 7th Congressional District for the US House of Representatives. She received 85 percent of the votes and won by 218,519 votes. Jayapal is the first Indian-American woman elected to the US House of Representatives. Prior to the US House, she was elected to the Washington State Senate in 2015. She is known for her strong advocacy for a fair immigration system. She was a member of the House Judiciary Committee as well as the Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity. Jayapal was born and brought up in Chennai, and moved to the US at the age of 16 to study at Georgetown University. She also has an MBA from Northwestern University.

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